Notre Dame football: Can Irish avoid Week 13 trip-up at North Carolina?

North Carolina vs. North Dame football is one of the biggest games of the weekend and one that carries both playoff and conference title implications.

Notre Dame came in second in the first college football playoff rankings of the year and they hope to avoid the upset in Chapel Hill against North Carolina and stay in the top four in next weekends rankings. Doing that will not be an easy task because North Carolina has one of the best offenses in the country and have the skill position players to test Notre Dame’s excellent defense.

The Fighting Irish are coming off of a bye week and have their eyes set on making the ACC championship game and then the College Football Playoff. To do that, they will need to enter selection Sunday with one of fewer losses and they can ill afford to lose to the Tar Heels because that would mean that Notre Dame would need to beat a Clemson team that would then have Trevor Lawrence at quarterback and would be a tough team to beat.

This a chance to make another statement in front of a national audience.

North Carolina came in at No. 19 in the playoff rankings and they appear to be clicking at the right time, especially on offense. Sam Howell playing like one of the best quarterbacks in the country and he has the best running back duo in the country behind him in Javonte Williams and Michael Carter, as well as one of the top receiving tandems in the country in Dyami Brown and Dazz Newsome.

This will be by far the biggest test for North Carolina this season, as they have not faced a defense on the same level as Notre Dame’s. This might be the best offense that Notre Dame has faced, if you think that this North Carolina offense is better than Clemson’s without Lawrence.

Here is how you can watch Notre Dame vs North Carolina on Friday.

Date: Friday, Nov. 27
Time: 3:30 p.m ET
Venue: Kenan Memorial Stadium
Location: Chapel Hill, N.C.
TV: ABC
Live Stream: WatchESPN or FuboTV

Keys to Victory

For the Notre Dame offense, the biggest key of the game will be controlling the tempo and being physical in the run game. North Carolina is going to want to play fast and hit big plays on offense and that is not the kind of game that Notre Dame is going to want to play. Notre Dame could win that way, but it is going to want to dictate the pace and tempo in this one.

For the Notre Dame defense, they are going to want to limit the big plays that North Carolina is going to want hit. Getting a pass rush on Sam Howell is also going to be the key, because North Carolina has been susceptible to turnovers in their losses to Florida State and Virginia when Howell has been pressured.

For the North Carolina offense, playing fast and hitting big plays will be the key to victory. North Carolina is built for shootouts because of their defense not being very good and they don’t want to play a slow and physical game that Notre Dame is going to want to try and play. Whether it is through the air or on the ground, North Carolina is going to need explosive plays.

For North Carolina’s defense, they are going to need to get turnovers to get this offense extra possessions and get Notre Dame down early. This defense is going to give up some yards and points, but if they can force some key turnovers, they will give themselves a chance to win.

Betting Odds

All odds are provided via The Action Network

Spread: Notre Dame -5.5
Over/Under: 66.5

Prediction

I think that this is a tricky game for Notre Dame. As good as the Fighting Irish are, North Carolina has the skill position players and quarterback to pull off this upset and I think they will. With the game being in Chapel Hill, I think the Tar Heels are in prime position to steal this one and put Notre Dame’s playoff hopes in jeopardy. Expect a fun shootout with lots of points and the Tar Heels coming out on top.

Final Score: North Carolina 45, Notre Dame 42